The Eastern Lubber Grasshopper, Romalea microptera, is a destructive pest in FL. The large, 2-3″ yellow-tawny adults have short wings (microptera) making them unable to fly. Their common name, “lubber” comes from the old English word “lobre” which means lazy or clumsy, which describes their slow-moving character good at climbing and bad at leaping. Immature nymphs are black with red/yellow markings.
They eat foliage voraciously, with favorites vegetables peas, lettuce, kale, beans, and cabbage are relative favorites of lubbers, while in flower beds, lubbers commonly defoliate amaryllis, Amazon lily, crinum, narcissus, oleander, butterfly weed, canna, Mexican petunia, and lantana.
Best management is to hand pick and crush or dump into a bucket of soapy water. If too numerous, a FFL pesticide, such as Neem oil or horticultural soap can be used.
This post was written with the help of Cathy Keller, Lake County Master Gardener Volunteer. Thank you!
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